1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of dispensing liquid into bottles, cans, or other containers, using a filling element that has a liquid flow valve and a delivery opening, via which, in a filling phase, with said liquid flow valve open, said liquid that is to be dispensed flows into said container that is to be filled through an opening thereof, whereby in a rinsing phase that precedes the filling phase, the interior of the container is supplied with a rinsing gas via a tubular member that extends through the opening of the container into the interior thereof, with the rinsing gas being discharged into the container from a gas conduit opening provided at a bottom end of the tubular member. The present invention also relates to a filling element for filling machines for dispensing a liquid into bottles, cans, or other containers, with the filling element including a liquid flow valve that has a valve body that can be moved back and forth between a position that blocks the liquid flow valve and a position that opens the liquid flow valve, with the filling element being provided in the vicinity of a filling element axis with a delivery opening via which, in a filling phase, with the liquid flow valve open, the liquid that is to be dispensed flows into the container that is to be filled through an opening thereof, and with the filling element also being provided with a tubular member that projects downwardly beyond the filling element and is provided at its bottom, remote from the filling element and in the vicinity of the filling element axis, with an opening of a gas conduit that is formed in the tubular member and is connectable via a control valve arrangement with a source of pressurized rinsing gas.
2. Description of the Prior Art
German Auslegeschrift No. 12 07 230 Hinxlage et al (Holstein & Kappert Maschinenfabrik Phoenix GmbH) dated Dec. 16, 1965, corresponding to British Patent No. 10 24 217-Hinxlage et al (Holstein & Kappert Maschinenfabrik Phoenix GmbH) dated Mar. 30, 1966, discloses a method for dispensing material that is sensitive to air or oxygen. With this heretofore known method, a container that is to be filled is evacuated, is then pressurized with an inert gas, and is finally filed in the filling phase with the liquid material, which as it flows into the container displaces the inert gas located there together with any residual gas that is present into the gas chamber of a supply tank of the filling machine; from time to time, a certain quantity of the air/inert gas mixture that has accumulated in the gas chamber of the supply tank is drawn off and replaced with pure inert gas. The withdrawn air/inert gas mixture is then preferably used to rinse the containers in a rinsing phase that precedes the evacuation and pressurizing. For this purpose, the rinsing gas that is formed from the air/inert gas mixture is supplied to a respective container via a tubular member that projects beyond the bottom of the filling element and that extends through the container opening into the interior of the container, with the bottom of the tubular member being provided with an opening for the discharge of the rinsing gas. During this rinsing (rinsing phase), the interior of the container communicates with the atmosphere via the container opening. The air displaced by the rinsing gas, but also the rinsing gas itself, can thus flow outwardly via the opening of the container. Unfortunately, one of the drawbacks of this heretofore known method is that after the rinsing phase, a relatively great amount of residual air remains in the container.
It is therefore an object of the present invention, in a method for dispensing liquid material into a container, to significantly improve the rinsing or flushing that precedes the actual filling phase in such a way that the rinsing time, and the quantity of residual air that remains in the container, are significantly reduced.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a filling element that is suitable for carrying out the inventive method.